Cutting-Edge Design

Day 2 Nespresso Cup

THE STAGE IS SET FOR THE ULTIMATE BATTLE FOR THE NESPRESSO CUP TROPHY

PORTOFINO, ITALY (8 May 2010) – The second day of racing in Portofino focuses on design as the Nespresso Cup Trophy is unveiled and the Wally yachts demonstrate their high-performance design out on the water leaving the front-runners on equal points going into the final day tomorrow…

Portofino lived up to its reputation for challenging and tricky racing conditions as the wind took its time to materialise on day 2 of the Nespresso Cup. Although it was no hardship to sit and wait for the breeze in these beautiful surroundings as the weekend public enjoyed the splendour of the Wally fleet lined up on the quay. The Yacht Club Italiano got today’s race away early in the afternoon in a 6-9 knot south-easterly breeze and, as if on cue, with the TV helicopter buzzing overhead, the sun finally made an appearance to light up the Wally fleet. It was Sir Lindsay Owen Jones’ Magic Carpet Squared that claimed victory in today’s race leading from start to finish, although as tactician Tony Rey explained it wasn’t quite as simple as it seemed: “Maybe we made it look easy off the boat but I can promise you it was not easy at any point. You’re never quite secure in your position but we were fortunate we found a nice place on the starting line and we were the first boat to tack on to port and that set us up to hit the first few shifts. From there, once you’ve sniffed the front, it’s easier to put your elbows out and keep the bigger boats behind us. Y3K and Indio are always good competitors and they certainly gained enough to make us nervous a few times.”As they did on the downwind leg as the breeze faded allowing the chasing boats to catch the leader with only 30 seconds separating Magic Carpet Squared from Y3K at the downwind mark.

Today’s win leaves Magic Carpet Squared at the top of the leaderboard on equal points with J One going into the final day tomorrow, setting the scene for an exciting duel: “We love racing against the J One team. It’s tough racing against them because they sail far behind us on elapsed time and it forces us to sail a perfect race to stay ahead.

The weather scenario here in Portofino has been far from normal as Italy’s favourite America’s Cup legend and Nespresso Cup Race Ambassador, Francesco de Angelis, explained: “It has been raining heavily on Italy for more than one week so very unusual weather pattern for this time of the year. But as long as there is a race that will be good as there are still a few positions that people can get if they beat their direct opponent - not just for first and second but also third and fourth."

The ultimate day of this first edition of the Nespresso Cup is all set to be a show-stopper in every way.

Focus on Design as the Nespresso Cup Trophy is unveiled…

The fusion of performance, aesthetics and design that underpins the Nespresso Cup is further symbolised by the design of the Cup’s trophy for which Nespresso partnered with industrial designer Konstantin Grcic – the trophy was revealed tonight at the Nespresso Cup party.

“I’ve always had this fascination for boats and probably a certain romance about the idea of being out there on the water. A good boat has its performance built into the design but it’s also about technology and performance,” said Konstantin Grcic. “I started the design process of the Nespresso Cup trophy by looking into the world of sailing: the equipment, the elements, the people, the emotions. It’s sailing but it is Wally boats, not just any kind of sailboat but a very specific type. I felt it had to be a different take on a trophy, it looks more like a sail, it becomes a different kind of typology but I think an appropriate one for today’s racing.”

Race 2 Overall Positions Top 3 :

1 Magic Carpet Squared / Lindsay Owen Jones

2 J One / Jean-Charles Decaux

3 Y3K / Peter Claus Offen

Overall Position Nespresso Cup Trophy (Provisional) after 2 races :

1 / Magic Carpet Squared / Lindsay Owen Jones / 3 pts

2 / J One / Jean-Charles Decaux / 3 pts

3 / Y3K / Peter Claus Offen / 7pts

More information on the Nespresso Cup dedicated website on www.nespressocup.com

The Nespresso Cup combines the unique and cutting-edge design of Nespresso and Wally representing the integration of function and form. Luca Bassani Antivari, President and Founder comments on the unique design of the Wally Yachts and Konstantin Grcic, designer of the Nespresso Cup Trophy, talks about his inspiration for the design. Halfway through the Nespresso Cup, Day 2 saw some tense action out on the race course ahead of the final day, as the Race Ambassadors Loick Peyron, Francesco de Angelis and Paul Cayard competed in the special Wally Nano Regatta.